Cash and parcel carrying system for store service



(No Model.) S a Sheet sSh-eet' 1. J., T. COWLEY.

CASH AND PARCEL CARRYING SYSTEM FOR STORE SERVICE. Nq %l1,108. IPatented Jan. 20,1885.'

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. T. COWLEY.

CASH AND PARCEL CARRYING SYSTEM FOR STORE SERVICE. No. 311,108. 1Patented Jan. 20, 188-5.

WITRTESSES? H kjIN ENAOB ATTORNEY M l.) 3 SheetsSheet 3.

J. T. COWLEY.

CASH AND PARCEL CARRYING SYSTEM FOR STORE SERVICE. No. 311,108. PatentedJan. 20, 1885 a? /I|-(-}-E(& E -o v T (9 C 1 SSES WITNE ATTORNEY UNITEDSTATES PATENT QFFICE,

JAMES T. COVLEY, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

CASH AND PARCEL QARRYING SYSTEM FOR STORE SERVICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 311,108, dated January20, 1885.

Application filed December 22, 1884. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES T. CowLEY, of Baltimore, in the county ofBaltimore and State of Maryland, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Cash and Parcel Carrying Systems for Store Service; andI do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, which will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference markedthereon, which form part of this specification.

This invention relates to cash and parcel carrying systems for servicein stores, warehouses, and the like, and is designed to furnish thegreatest effectiveness of operation,

simplicity, and rapidity with which the car may be transmitted from theclerk to the cashier and again returned to him, the same consisting,substantially, in the system as constructed, and in such other detailsas will hereinafter be distinctly described,and pointed out in theclaims.

In constructing my system I employ between each station of the counteror counters of the salesmen and the counter ordesk of the wrapping-clerktwo tracks, one of which is inclined in the direction of thewrappingclerks counter and termed the forwardingtrack, and the otherbeing inclined reversely, or from the wrapping-clerks desk in thedirection of the salesmans counter, and termed the return-track.

The essence of my invention lies in the provision of means at thesalesmans end by which the car or carrier is elevated and caused to runupon the inclined forwarding-track, the elevator automaticallydescending to a position coincident with the lower end of thereturn-track and serving the capacity of receiver for the car whenreturned, and in means provided at the wrapping-clerks end for loweringor delivering the car or carrier automatically from the forwarding-trackonto automatic lowering mechanism located at this terminal of thereturn-track, this latter mechanism also serving the function ofelevator for the car to said return-track, my said invention being thusdistinguished from those systems in which a carrier is received'from areturn-track and then transferred from such receiver and placed in arestorer or elevator and elevated to a forwarding-track.

Referring to the annexed sheets of drawings, Figure 1 represents a sideelevation of system embodying my invention, the dotted lines and longerarrows denoting the direction in which the two tracks are divergent fromeach other, and the shorter arrows indicating the direction in which thecars travel to and fro between the wrappingclerk and salesmen. Fig. 2represents aplan view thereof. Fig. 3 represents a plan view of one ofthe supporting-brackets for the tracks at the salesmans end, and Fig. 4a side elevation thereof. Figs. 5 and 6 are detail views, re-

' spectively, of the automatic elevator and the hinged transferring-armat the terminal of the forwarding-track, by which the car is caused todescend onto the automatic lowering devices attached to the return-trackat the sameend. Fig. 7 is a detail view in elevation of a slightmodification.

As herein illustrated,the two tracks are shown converging toward eachother at one end and supported at such end to devices located above thewrapping-clerks counter, which, as shown, is suspended from the ceiling,the same being designed to extend down to within close proximity to thecashier; but it is obvious that instead of being thus indirectly placedin communication with the cashier the attachment may be made directly tothe desk of the cashier.

tension, a, for facilitating the passage of the wheels of the car fromthe track onto the hinged arm a. The said bracket is secured to a bar orrod, 1, as shown, and it is preferably jointed ICO taken up from time totime.

or swiveled, as at 2, by which it can be turned to conform to anydirection that it maybe desired to extend the track. Similarly securedto a like bar, 3, is a bracket, 1), constructed in like manner as. thebracket a, excepting that in lieu of the'arm a, restored by a spring, itis provided with ahinged arm, b, having attached to its free end a cordor other flexible media, b, which passes over a small pulley,

b, borne by an upright projection, as shown,

the cord having a weighted handle. The two tracks at this point arearranged, preferably, one above the other, and at such distances apartas to permit a perfect freedom of operation. The arm a of the bracket a,when depressed by the weight of the car, should be sufficiently long torest upon the bracket 1) beneath, so as to insure a proper transfer fromone to the other. At the salesmans end the two tracks are permanentlyfixed to brackets c d, secured to and projecting outwardly from adepending rod or support, D, the former or upper one bearing pulleys cand c 0, (see detail, Fig. 4,) and each of them being formed withprojecting offsets or stops 6 e. lhey may also be formed with a branch,f,which'bears a curved extension, 9, similar to and for the same purposeas a, or the latter may be separate therefrom and the proper connectionof the two made, wire-tighteners It being provided atthe ends of eachtrack, by which the slack may be These brackets c and d are arranged onthe depending rod D at such a distance apart as to give the tracks theirproper inclination, and connecting the two are vertical guide-rods z i,which pass through the offsets c e, and are properly secured by nuts orotherwise. WVorking between the guide-rods t t is an elevator, E,provided with a hinged arm, Z, similar to b, to which is attached acord, m, that renders over the pulley c' of the bracket 0, and extendsdown to within convenient reach of the salesman or operator. Secured inthe side of the elevator is another cord, a, which renders over both thepulleys c c, and extends downwardly along side the cord m, each of saidcords having a weighted handle, as shown.

The elevatoris designed to be of weight sufficient to overcome theweight of the handle on cord n, so that normally the elevator will restupon the stops of the lower bracket, d, and when the carrier is receivedfrom the cashier it runs upon the cord 0, and is depressed or lowered towithin reach of the clerk, as represented in dotted lines.

The operation is as follows: A sale having been made by the clerk, andthe elevator being at rest upon the stops of the lower bracket, d, (seedotted lines,) he (the clerk) draws downwardly on the cord at and raisesthe elevator up to the position shown in full lines, whereupon bypulling on the cord at the arm I) and that portion of said cord betweenthe arm and pulley 0' are caused to assume the position of an incline,and the car consequently runs down upon the forwardingtrack by gravity.

The clerk, while performing this operation, keeps hold of the cord m,the weight on the cord at meanwhile perfectly eounterbalancing the carduring its elevation, and as soon as the car has descended upon theforwarding-track the operator releases both cords and the elevator Edescends below to act as receiver for the car on its return from thecashier.

Vhile certain devices or mechanism have been herein set forth, it isobvious that my in-.

vention is subject 'to various modifications by which that proposed tobe accomplished from the description in the fore part of myspecification is carried into effect.

As one modification, I have represented in Fig. 7 the employment ofasingle bracket, M. in lieu of a and b, the same having a widenedextremity, 0,with its two sides or ends turned over, to which the endsof the tracks are secured, and in which the end of the hinged arm arests or plays, whether the arm be raised or elevated as it is normallyby the spring a, or depressed by a pull upon the cord 0, depend ingtherefrom. A spring hook or stop, 19, is provided thereon to catch thecar when it arrives. In this instance the spring a is designed to besufficiently powerful to resist depression of the arm by the weight ofthe car, the operation of transfer from the forwarding-track beingeffected by pulling upon the cord, the said spring acting to restore thearm.

Having thus described my invention, I claim 1. In storeservice systems,the combination, with forwarding and return tracks extending between thecashiers desk and each station,0f an elevator for elevating the car uponthe forwarding-track, which descends automatically and acts as areceiver for the return-track, substantially as described.

2. In store-service systems, the combination of forwarding and returntracks inclined in opposite directions, and an elevator for elevatingthe car to the forwarding-track, which descends automatically and servesas a receiver for the car from the return-track, substantially asdescribed.

3. In store-service systems, the combination, with forwarding and returntracks inclined in directions opposite to each other, of a drop fortransferring the car fromthe forwarding-track, and flexible media forreceiving the car, and

by which it is elevated to the return-track,-

substantially as described.

4. The combination, in a storeservice system, of forwarding and returntracks inclined in opposite directions to each other, an elevator forelevating the car upon the forwardingtraek, and descending to act asreceiver for the return-track, a drop for transferring the car from theforwarding-track, and flexible media for receiving the car, and by;which it is elevated to the return-track, substantially as described.

5. In store-service systems, the combination, with thereversely-inclined forwarding and return tracks, of the brackets c (1,formed with the a, the bracket 1), having hinged arm I) and pulley b,and the weighted cord attached to arm I) and rendering over the pulley,substantially as described.

7. In astore-service system,the combination, with reversely-inclinedforwarding and return tracks, of a supporting-bracket for the two,widened at its extremity, and having the two ends or sides thereof bentor turned over, the

hinged arm a and its depending cord, the spring a, and the spring-catchp, substantially as described.

8. The combination, in a storeservice system, of independent forwardingand return tracks for each station, an elevator for elevating a car to aforwarding-traek, which also serves as a receiver for the return-track,and devices for transferring and receiving the car from one track to theother, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

J AMES T. COWLEY. \Vitnesses:

EDWARD E. ELLIs, M. P. CALLAN.

